My older daughter has a craving for grilled octopus. Best place to find it west of the 405? Wife and younger kid away on school field trip, so thought older kid and I could grab a quick bite tonight. She has to study for a big test tomorrow so prefer to stay very much on the Westside.
Suggestions for best octopus dish around here, preferably grilled (as opposed to a sushi preparation)? [Edit: Keep in mind it’s Monday and many places aren’t open. Also, want to stay as close to SM/Venice/WLA as possible.]
As thanks (in advance), here’s a gratuitous shot of the grilled octopus dish I had at chi SPACCA last month:
Believe it or not, some of the best grilled octopus I’ve had was @ Smoke Oil Salt when Perfecto Rocher was helming. Super tender, smokey, and crisp, and…oops, not West of the 405.
Thanks! That Hatchet Hall one looks amazing. FwD is a bit too far, even though it is west of 405. Both SMYC and Tar & Roses have the octopus skewers, but SMYC is closed on Mondays. Maybe T&R is the way to go, but that one from HH is calling to me. Maybe I’ll text the pic of the dish to my daughter and tell her to blow off studying for an hour or two so we can go there. Does that make me a bad parent?
Gjusta has grilled octopus salad on the dinner menu. I had it last weekend and it came with fresh shucked beans - Ithis may or may not be a plus. If you like the beans with a long–braised creaminess, this ain’t it. The beans are just cooked so are more al denté and fresh.
Kettle Black, that’s the place in Silver Lake? Same chef as Sawyer now (or rather, Kettle Black’s chef is now Sawyer’s as well)? (Have you tried Sawyer?)
Have not been to Sawyer but we really enjoyed Kettle Black. It is “Bestia-like,” I would say. But then I can’t say it with conviction since I did not try their pastas. Had the octopus, eggplant (really tight) and a pizza. The pizza was very much like Sotto’s and Bestia’s pies – what I call LA Neo-Neopolitan: soft and wet center, thick and chewy on the sides. If you don’t like Sotto’s 'za, you probably won’t like KB’s.
Where is the review my man?? This place is dying for a report! (J Gold review non-withstanding). I am really curious about the pastas in particular though.
Thanks for the reminder! Had a great family meal there right before summer this year, and my daughter and I shared that dish–actually, if I remember the whole family got in on the action, so I only got a bite or two. Reason to revisit!
That is it. Sorry.
We were at the Breeder’s Cup all day and just wanted a quick snack, and a real cocktail, on the way home. We tried those dishes and brought most of it home. They were all great the next day. I just read Gold-I-Locks piece and we seem to have happened into the two dishes he extolled, eggplant and Octo - both were shimmeringly good. I don’t feel I can write much more about an Italian place whose pasta I have not tried (or even seen).
If they prepare it anything like Osteria Mozza I bet it’s really tender. They supposedly save wine corks and put them in the octopus marinade to tenderize them. Anyway, as I mentioned to you previously, it looks sooo good.
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